War of the Realms
by NoScopedn00b
Summary: [NaruHina AU] For humans, it is a constant cycle birth, life, and death. For the Spirits, it is a cumbersome and boring task to bring souls over to the Next World, and they have had enough. Full summary inside.


**Author's Notes: **Heyo everybody! Don't worry, my other story (The Eighth) is not going on hiatus. I'm going to try to do both stories at the same time (which is going to be fairly difficult with school and all).

Rated for: themes of death, minor gore, and language.

Summary: Naruto Uzumaki is your average, everyday Spirit Reaper. His job is to carry souls over into the Next World. Unfortunately, he falls for one of the souls, a certain lavender-haired girl that goes by the name of Hinata Hyuuga. On top of that, the other Spirits and Demons are planning a rebellion against the mortal world for the mortals have nearly destroyed it and do not deserve such a pleasure. Can Naruto save Hinata without risking treason? Read and find out.

Disclaimer: No, I don't own Naruto, just this story.

* * *

A breeze swept through the city that was typical of a November night. Had any people actually occupied the streets at this time, this breeze would have signaled something calming, perhaps washing over some stress that had accumulated over the day.

For one person, this breeze would signal something far different: the beginning of a new life.

The two individuals that were there could not be bothered with such trivial matters as weather patterns, although they were in fact the ones that caused this breeze. They had business to do, and they would be damned if they were going to be late. There would be hell to pay if they were, and that is meant both literally and figuratively.

Both were dressed as normal businessmen, one was short with black hair done up in a neat ponytail while the other one sported something far messier—his blonde locks fell all over the place, but they never obstructed his field of vision. He also had the appearance of a young man, probably somewhere between the ages of twenty-two or twenty-three. He felt very comfortable, his grin never leaving his face. Some would go as far to say he could easily be described as cocky, but in truth he was merely excited. Nothing brought him more pleasure than a job well done.

His partner looked slightly younger, perhaps only eighteen. Unfortunately, this dark-haired one appeared far less composed than his blonde counterpart. He fidgeted about every few seconds, an obvious symptom of nervousness. On top of that, his eyes always shifted in every other direction, as if trying to find an imaginary ghost that was haunting him. Despite constant reassurances that everything would go well, he could not help but feel anxious.

"Who are we supposed to meet Boss?" The dark-haired one spoke up in order to break the silence. They had been waiting for at least three minutes, and their mark had thus far made no signs of showing up.

"Hell if I know. That's not my job, it's yours. Check the List."

Naruto Uzumaki, the blonde of the two, began to get annoyed. His new apprentice, Konohamaru, was turning out to be somewhat troublesome, even on the verge of just plain aggravating. When was he going to understand he held the List and Naruto did the important jobs, like actually bringing them into the Mortal Realm and bringing the souls back? Adding the List to his list of duties would probably prove to be too much for this particular lazy Spirit.

Said apprentice flipped out what appeared to be a standard palm pilot. A brilliant glow of white flashed across the small screen, displaying the only three things that it could hold: names of different people with chronological dates and times listed next to them.

"We are meeting a Mr. Daisuke Fukui, at exactly 11:56 p.m. on the date of November the 12th, 2007." replied Konohamaru expertly. Glancing down towards his watch, he also added, "It's 11:54 already. Perhaps there is a mistake?"

Naruto sighed. Konohamaru was so young, so ignorant. He of all people should know the List was never wrong, ever. He did, after all, graduate at the top of his class. The only reason for this momentary hesitation would have to be the lack of experience he had, which was obvious considering he was new to this business.

"Listen to me Konohamaru: the List is never wrong. If it were, then the universe would fold in upon itself due to the collapse of its Grand Design of death," recited Naruto in an almost robotic tone. His master, Jiraiya, had instilled this little paradox into his head so many times that he was sure if he opened up his head right now, the words would probably be imprinted somewhere on his brain.

"Oh, of course Naruto. How foolish of me" Konohamaru smiled sheepishly. He could not help but steal another glance at his watch. This time, the soft neon glow read 11:55 and thirty seconds.

Noticing the look of apprehension that painted his partner's face, Naruto yawned, "patience, Konohamaru. I didn't become one of the top Spirits for nothing you know."

After consoling his palpably nerve-wrecked apprentice, Naruto turned around chuckled. He remembered the first time he had become an apprentice under the guidance of Jiraiya. Needless to say, Naruto's mistakes almost made them miss their mark. Konohamaru and himself were so alike, it was almost uncanny.

"Twenty seconds Boss," mumbled Konohamaru. _There's no way he's wrong. I just gotta trust him. He wouldn't let the universe fold in on itself, right?_

The street was filled with suddenly filled with the nervous tapping of Konohamaru's foot. Under his breath, he began counting the seconds until 11:56.

_Nine… Eight… Seven… _

Naruto looked over his shoulder in the direction of his apprentice. He remained calm since they entered the Mortal Realm; the same could not be said for Konohamaru.

The pace of the tapping quickened. What had once sounded like a ball slowly bouncing up and down on a sidewalk now resembled a handful of pebbles being continuously dropped without respite. If Konohamaru wasn't already dead, he would surely be feeling the symptoms of a heart attack right now.

Oh this scene was almost the same between Naruto and Jiraiya five thousand years earlier. No wonder the renowned Perverted Spirit paired Naruto with this guy. It had taken Jiraiya five thousand years, but he finally gotten his revenge; Naruto finally understood what he had meant when he said, "boy, your nervousness is going to be the second death of me!"

_Six… Five… Four… oh shit the universe is going to collapse! Two…_

"One." Naruto finished for his apprentice. As if on cue, a body fell from the sky, landing on the sidewalk with a dull 'thud.'

"See? Nothing to worry about Konohamaru." Naruto couldn't help but laugh. Konohamaru had fainted right after the body fell, no doubt because it landed a mere two feet from him.

Naruto bent down to examine the body. The impact itself should've killed him instantaneously, but he had seen his fair share of miracles. Ever wonder why people claim to have "seen beyond the grave"? Yeah, that was most likely Naruto trying to take someone's soul before their time was "up."

"Let's see here… broken arms and legs, neck twisted back in a full 180 degrees, chest crushed beyond recognition, blood staining the ground… and my new shirt! Damnit! Why can't people die quietly anymore?"

Grumbling about something along the lines of "new shirt, damn humans," Naruto continued with his work. Konohamaru still hadn't woken up, but he wouldn't have to until they got back to the Spirit Realm. Maybe he could leave him in the Mortal World for the night… nah. Konohamaru would probably end up possessing some poor soul. That wouldn't go over well for his supervisor, Naruto, and he couldn't handle anymore "mishaps" when dealing with mortals.

"Wha- where am I? What happened? Who the hell are you?!" Daisuke Fukui's soul and woken up, not even realizing he didn't have a body anymore.

"You are sprawled out on the ground. You just died. I am Naruto Uzumaki, your guide. I am going to help you in your… wait hold on." Grumbling, Naruto pulled out a small orange book and began looking for the right word. Yes, even political correctness had found its way into the Spirit Realm. "Ah here we go! _Transition_ into the Next World."

Naruto gave Daisuke about ten seconds to ponder over what he had just been told. Some parts just did not make any sense at all. Sure, he had just been dealing with a very angry Japanese mob in his penthouse that rested on top of a fifty story apartment moments ago, and it _is _a fact that he didn't return their money in the timeframe they requested, _and _on top of that they _are_ known to get very, VERY angry over money (nine hundred million yen in this case) that is borrowed but not returned… But to be dead right now? Impossible.

Daisuke glanced down just to make sure his body was still there. Arms, check. Legs, check. Torso, check. Glowing white light surrounding body, check. Hands, che—. Wait, glowing white light? Now _that_ was new.

"Okay I'm sure you are well aware of your new—" Naruto peeked down at his orange book again. "—_addition._" Naruto also thought, _what was wrong with just saying 'new glowing-fucking-light'?_

Naruto never got the chance to explain. Daisuke simply took off in a sprint without wanting to hear anything more. He was used to running away from the problem, but that only ended up screwing him over even more. This situation would prove to be no different.

For the second time tonight, Naruto sighed. This was classic scenario number two: the target soul runs away. Naruto much preferred scenario number one: the target soul simply faints. He had never gotten a scenario number three, where the target soul is actually glad to leave.

Unfortunately for this blonde-haired Spirit, the majority of his marks always run on sight. He rarely even gets to introduce himself, this being a rare exception.

Daisuke wasn't even panting as he sped down one of the alley ways near his home. Normally, running this far would cause him to break out into a sweat, but he was currently too preoccupied to care. Of course, if he had been paying attention, he would've realized that he was about to run smack into the hands of a certain irked Spirit.

"Now, I'm going to say this only once, you _cannot_ escape. You are dead, get used to it. Come on, I wanna go home now. Stop being such a wuss."

Naruto usually had far more tact than previously displayed, but tonight just happened to be all-you-can-eat night at Ichiraku's Ramen Bar. He would be damned if he was going to miss it, especially if it was because of some scared mortal.

"I'm not going anywhere you freak!" Daisuke sped off into a building, well more specifically he ran through a wall into the building. He was now a spirit after all. Once you died, you immediately severe all physical ties with the Mortal World, giving you free reign to do as you please, that is until you get brought over to the Next World.

"Why do they always run from me?" asked Naruto exasperatedly. "This never happens to _Sasuke._"

Naruto practically spat the name out as if it were poison. They had been rivals since birth, and of course Sasuke had been blessed with the good looks that practically every female Spirit swooned over. His only weakness was the fact that he was too uptight or emo to care, but that only made the girls want him more. On second thought, maybe he doesn't have any weaknesses at all. Needless to say, this only infuriated Naruto even more.

"That's it, time to end this," growled Naruto. "But first, I should probably pick up Konohamaru."

With that, Naruto sped off to regroup with his unconcious apperentice.

* * *

Daisuke had found a hiding place inside of a large six room apartment. Whoever lived here was very rich indeed; their very living room literally screamed wealth. Daisuke didn't have much time to loll around in front of their fifty inch plasma screen television, nor could he afford to take a nap on their luxurious leather couch. No, instead he was being chased by some blonde-haired madman, and time was of the essence. Quickly glancing around the room for hiding places, he stuffed himself inside a small cedar closet, alongside the numerous stuffed animals that already inhabited the petite wooden space.

As quickly as Daisuke hid himself, Naruto, along with the newly invigorated Konohamaru, had already found him. Before yanking him out of the closet, Naruto addressed the man in a bored tone, "Look, it is impossible to hide from me. I can basically move at the speed of light, so hiding is really out of the question. Just come with me and accept your fate."

"Yeah, you better listen to Naruto. He isn't really going to mess around anymore." Konohamaru had finally found his voice, and not a moment too soon. The addition of this new Spirit was just enough to break poor Daisuke down.

Daisuke couldn't even speak. A feeling that he was all too familiar with sprang up and strangled his throat, leaving him completely speechless. This fear also left him completely immobilized, leaving him completing at the mercy of Naruto. Finally, this Spirit would get to go home and leave this wretched place.

"No objections?" Naruto wouldn't have let him get a word in edgewise, but he couldn't help but throw in a little humor before the job was done. "Alright then, follow me."

Naruto held out his hand in a helpful sort of way, as he would if he were trying to lead a helpless child across the street. Numbly, Daisuke accepted his offer. He was done trying to run away from his problems; that had brought him enough trouble in the past. Besides, by the looks of things this blonde wasn't likely to continue being so nice.

"Hello? Is somebody in here? You guys better get out, or else I'm calling the cops!" the shrill voice of what sounded to be a teenage girl filled the room.

For a second time seemed to stop. How could it be possible for another human to see these three boisterous Spirits? True, they were making a racket loud enough to wake the dead, no pun intended, but they were Spirits, meaning no humans should be able to hear, much less see, them. This logic only led to one conclusion: this girl must be dead too.

In the blink of an eye, Naruto fell upon the girl. His footsteps were light; it was almost as if he glided across the rug. Stopping mere inches right in front of the girl's face, Naruto began examining her, looking for any signs of why she was able to see them. The girl stood completely still, either from the shock of seeing somebody travel the distance of her living room in the space of less than a second, or because she was captivated by the blonde's bright cerulean eyes. In any case, she remained still offering no chances of causing a ruckus.

Naruto, on the other hand, was too busy racking his brain in the hopes of finding an answer to this predicament. _'She doesn't look like anything special, but her eyes are really weird… they're like white and don't even have any pupils! She is kinda pretty though… no! I can't afford to think like Jiraiya right now. I will have to address this to the Council later.'_

"Hey girl, what's your name?" As always, Naruto began with questions that were straight and to the point.

"Umm I uh…" Hinata still couldn't find her voice; the handsome boy… no man… that was standing in front of her occupied her thoughts too much to be thinking of anything else, even her own name. She would definitely be telling Sakura about this whole encounter tomorrow.

"Did I stutter, girl? I _said_ what's your _name?_" Feeling no remorse for the stunned teenager, Naruto blazed onwards. All he needed was a name to put forth to the Council, then he could finally go back home where he would be welcomed with a nearly infinite supply of Ichiraku's ramen.

"Oh, sorry. I'm Hinata Hyuuga. And you are?"

Naruto paid to attention; he was too tired and had no time for pleasantries. Glancing over his shoulder towards his apprentice, he yelled, "Konohamaru, you know what to do."

Konohamaru had already dug into his pocket to retrieve the List. He scanned the small screen not only once, twice, but three times. No matter how hard he looked, the simple fact remained: no slot under the name of 'Hinata Hyuuga' appeared.

"Sorry Boss, no matches. We really should get going though. Just knock her out or something; she'll think this was all a dream or something. We'll just ask the Council about it later. What harm can one little girl do anyways?"

It's hard to argue with this logic, especially when dreams of ramen kept popping up in Naruto's head.

"Hey what do you mean knock me ou—" Hinata never finished her sentence. Instead, Naruto swung his fist around connecting to her temple. The impact wasn't particularly hard, but it did the job—Hinata slumped over instantly, only to be caught in the arms of Naruto. He carried her over to the couch, laying her down slowly as not to wake her.

"Hey Naruto, don't get too comfortable with her. I've heard all about Jiraiya, and I won't allow you to turn into him!"

"Shut up you stupid pervert! I'm not anything like that… that…" Words could not describe how perverted Jiraiya was. Still, he put that "trait" of his to good use—his Make-Out Tactics novels are amongst the most popular books to ever be published in the Spirit Realm.

"Yeah, yeah sure. Let's go already, this place is boring."

"I see you aren't so nervous anymore, eh Konohamaru?" joked Naruto while giving his apprentice a soft punch in the arm.

"Mr. Umino said the first trip was always the hardest," retorted Konohamaru with a large, toothy smile.

"Did he tell you anything about going back?"

"Of course, all you do is open the portal with specific hand seals and—"

Konohamaru was cut short. Indeed, Naruto already began forming said hand seals after finishing his aforementioned question. Once Konohamaru began answer, Naruto's hand sliced through the air creating a rip that appeared to be floating in the air. Grabbing both Daisuke and Konohamaru by the scruffs of their necks, Naruto violently dragged them through the portal, allowing both individuals' screams to be swallowed whole.

* * *

Well what do you guys think? Reading & Reviewing is much appreciated.

Oh, and before I forget, Naruto doesn't actually eat ramen as we humans would. It's more of like a pleasure, not for sustenance. There, I said it. Now REVIEW!


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